Me Gusta! How to Say You Like Things in Spanish

How do you say “I like _____” in Spanish?

Me gusta is one of the most useful basic expressions. We’re constantly talking about things we do and don’t like, and it’s no different in Spanish.

But, this can be a tricky verb, as in some cases it doesn’t follow the normal rules. Fear not, by the end of this post you will get it.

We’ll also cover how to say you love something, want something, or hate something.

“I like” in Spanish: Me gusta

• Me gusta el helado (I like ice cream).
• A Manuel le gusta leer. (Manuel likes to read)
• A Ana le gusta el chocolate. (Ana likes chocolate)

“I don’t like”: No me gusta

• No me gusta el brócoli (I don’tlike broccoli).
• A Camila no le gusta madrugar. (Camila doesn’t like waking up early)
• No me gusta trabajar los domingos. (I don’t like working on sundays)

Conjugation

Notice, this is different from how things “usually” are for conjugations. The verb isn’t changing, we’re just changing the object in front. While confusing in relation to other Spanish verbs, if you look at it from an English standpoint – it’s pretty simple.

Instead of “I like” it’s “me gusta”. “You like” is “te gusta”. See how we’re just making the I/you/she/etc change the part in front, and then leaving the “like” as “gusta”?

English	Spansih
I like	Me gusta
You like	Te gusta
He likes	Le gusta
She likes	Le gusta
It likes	Le gusta
You like (plural)	Les gusta
We like	Nos gusta
They like	Les gusta

“Love” verb in Spanish: Amar

• Yo amo a mi familia (I love my family).
• Gustavo ama a su país. (Gustavo loves his country)
• Daniel ama a su esposa. (Daniel loves his wife)

Conjugation

Now, we’re back to normal conjugations ?

English	Spanish
I love	Yo amo
You love	Tú amas
You love (formal)	Usted ama
He loves	Él ama
She loves	Ella ama
It loves	Eso ama
You love (plural)	Ustedes aman
We love	Nosotros amamos
They love	Ellos aman

To make it negative (I don’t like), just add “no” in front of the verb. For instance “yo no amo” (I don’t love). If you are talking about loving someone, for instance “les amo” (I love them), to negate it, the “no” goes before all of that, “no les amo” (I don’t love them).

“Hate” verb in Spanish: Odiar

• Él odia las mentiras (He hates the lies).
• Gabriel odia llegar tarde. (Gabriel hates arriving late)
• Luz odia a su jefe. (Luz hates her boss)

Conjugation

Again, standard conjugation. Easy peasy!

English	Spanish
I hate	Yo odio
You hate	Tú odias
You hate (formal)	Usted odia
He hates	El odia
She hates	Ella odia
It hates	Eso odia
You love (plural)	Ustedes odian
We love/td>	Nosotros odiamos
They hate	Ellos odian

“Want” verb in Spanish: Querer

• Ella quiere un perro (She wants a dog).
• Carlos quiere ver a su familia. (Carlos wants to see his family)
• Valentine quiere dulces. (Valentine wants sweets)

Negative Examples

• Yo no quiero verte más (I don’t want to see you anymore).
• Él no quiere ir a clase. (He doesn’t want to go to class)
• Los niños no quieren comer vegetales. (The kids don’t want to eat vegetables)

Conjugation

There are a few irregular conjugations for this verb, but we use it so often that you’ll want to memorize it cold. Get our flashcards to do that for free here.

English	Spanish
I want	Yo quiero
You want	Tú quieres
You want (formal)	Usted quiere
He wants	El quiere
She wants	Ella quiere
It wants	Eso quiere
You want (plural)	Ustedes quieren
We want	Nosotros queremos
They want	Ellos quieren

Note: Quiero also means “I love”, depending on the context (but it’s usually I want). For instance, “te quiero” means “I love you”, but it’s much less serious than “te amo”. For instance, girls will tell their girlfriends “te quiero” all the time, but not “te amo”. If you’re dating someone, “te quiero” is when you’re dating after awhile, and “te amo” is when things get really serious. “Te amo” is very strong.

“Do you like?” in Spanish: ¿Te gusta?

To ask for preferences in Spanish we follow this structure:

¿Nosotros queremos comer más?
Conjugation + complement

Both have the same meaning. Here are more examples:

• ¿Te gusta ir de fiesta? (Do you like to party?)
• ¿Te gustan los animales? (Do you like animals?)
• ¿Te gusta aprender con BaseLang? (Do you like learning with BaseLang?)

Me Gusta Practice

Now, complete this according to your likes and dislikes.

There’s no answer key for this since it’s just your personal opinion.

1. Me gusta _________________________________________________
2. No me gusta _____________________________________________
3. Yo amo ___________________________________________________
4. Odio ______________________________________________________
5. Yo quiero ________________________________________________
6. Yo no quiero _____________________________________________

For more free practice, click here to get our private flashcards.

That’s all for this post! If you’re still confused or have questions, leave a comment and we’ll help you out ?